BALTIMORE – Michael Cantele, the associate athletic trainer at Gettysburg College, has been selected as the trainer for the U.S. women’s lacrosse Elite team. The Elite team forms the nucleus for the U.S. national team that competes in the World Cup every four years and also has numerous competitions each year, highlighted by the Champions Challenge each January and the Stars & Stripes Weekend each fall.

Cantele has significant experience training elite athletes in international competition. He served as athletic trainer for the Pan American Games and the U-23 men’s national soccer team in 1999, the World Youth Games in 1998 and the United States Olympic Committee in 1997.

A 1988 graduate of Gettysburg College and 1990 masters’ graduate of Old Dominion University, Cantele is certified by the National Athletic Trainers Association.

The first round of tryouts for the 2007-08 U.S. Elite team will be held during the US Lacrosse Women’s Division National Tournament from May 26-27 at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. Final tryouts will be held at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County in Catonsville, Md., from Aug. 3-5. The next World Cup will be held in the Czech Republic in 2009.

deBeer Lacrosse is the exclusive official equipment and apparel sponsor of the U.S. Women’s National Teams Program. Learn more about the company at www.debeerlacrosse.com.

US Lacrosse, a 501(c)(3) corporation, is the national governing body for men’s and women’s lacrosse. US Lacrosse has more than 215,000 members around the country. To learn more about the organization, please visit the Web site at www.uslacrosse.org.